The sound of her heels echoed faintly down the hallway as Maya exited her manager's office. Her chest tight with frustration.
The air in the agency's corridor buzzed with whispers. Her pulse throbbing behind her temples. The entire building seemed to be watching. Every glance, curious. And every murmured word sliced at her from all sides.
But she held her head high anyway, despite her manager's warning still echoing in her head:
> "You stand losing everything you've built, if you don't handle things right."
In there, Maya barely responded. And now the awkwardness in the room being loud but she refuse to give them the satisfaction of seeing her break.
She just needed to get away. Away from the stares, the questions, and the suffocating tension that clung to her like smoke.
All she needed now, was a moment for herself. To think things through.
